If I had 2 fewer kids, quite honestly, I think a Westphalia conversion on an old (1979 or older) VW van. Air cooled engine, bunks for sleeping, got it's own internal water tank (not huge, but still). Add some racks to the front to hold some extra fuel cans, strap extra water cans to the roof...

But since I have 4 kids, I think the aforementioned Ford F250 4x4 diesel, but with a backpack camper on the back.

Interesting choices for sure. I'm shocked no one went for surplus deuces from uncle sam. They have a butt load on auction right now and you can pick them up for 2-3 grand. Might have to put another 1,500 in them, if you want it prettier, lol but then you are all set. Large, but work horses. Ton of things you can use them for. Large vehicle yes, but any moving vehicle will draw attention depending on the situation.

Now, with that said, the regular old cherokee was mentioned, with the good old inline 6cyl. Lift kit, snorkel, etc. Great choice. I've thought of going through with a purchase, modding it, adding a trailer and calling it a day. My 2000 towed 5k, not quickly, but consistently. Loads of them out there, plenty of parts, well built solid vehicles. Cheap too. Plus, tons of accessories already on the market so no need to spend fortune on upfitting it with custom parts.

Interesting choices for sure. I'm shocked no one went for surplus deuces from uncle sam.

Too lazy to search, enjoying a Pyramid Brewery Discord Dark IPA1 after a looong day at work, while not-watching the--unsuccesful--pilot for the 1990s revival of Dark Shadows on Chiller2, but I'm pretty sure I posted links in another post in this forum to 1) Quad Cab conversions of deuces, and 2) Short bed conversions to same. (The later involves removing the rear axle, so it becomes a 4x4 instead of a 6x6.)

1. Malty as well as hoppy.2. Her idea, not mine... Chiller seems to be running a Dark Shadows marathon this weekend in support, or exploitation, of the Johnny Depp movie...

I still wonder if it would be cheaper to figure out how to protect a vehicle from EMP with some sort of under-hood Faraday cage. Sure, the newer cars and trucks aren't as "fixable" as the older vehicles are, but for those of us who have the mechanical skills of a snail, that's not going to be an issue. Newer vehicles also tend, IMHO, to be more reliable than the old beaters anyway.

Spouse (who is an electrical engineer) and I have been debating just how one could EMP-proof a new vehicle. The problem is that nobody seems to have any idea on how an EMP would be, or how susceptible most modern cars really are to EMP. The other thing would be trying to figure out how to simulate a strong EMP (probably with some sort of induced-current setup) to test our EMP proofing efforts.

Are there ANY former military vehicles that are ALREADY EMP proof? I can't recall. But, if you developed a working model, you could do well.

Early model M35 deuce and a halfs. M151 jeeps. Anything 60s and earlier. Maybe 70s and earlier. Anything that predates electronic ignition/fuel injection/everything. Of course, if you buy a gamma goat, you'll have other problems...

I once spent a weekend stranded in the Chorwon valley in KJorea when the electronic control module on my M880--camouflage painted Dodge pickup truck--went out, and they had to go scrounge one.

A well maintained used Astro van AWD has a certain appeal. They aren't going to be great offroad, but they will get you through a shallow ford or a medium snowfall.

At the end of the 1996 Oregon floods, I drove out of McMinnville through 18 inches of water on Highway 99 in my 1981 Vanagon (worst vehicle I've ever owned except for that moment, air cooled Vanagons were stupid and buying replacement engines made me stupider), after my Guard unit demobilized from the flood.* Recently I saw a off-road converted AWD Vanagon (water cooled gas engine), and that made a lot of sense to me.

The advantage of a van format is that it doesn't make you look like redneck without a lot of modification. If you strive for Gray Man, a van is a better way to that if you are coming from a city. If urbanites are looking for a prepared redneck to jug during a bug-out, they will target a truck before a van, in my estimation.

*I was a lousy infantry sergeant, something that influences a lot of my survival choices. My success experiences in survival situations indicate that cooperation with others works better for me. I've been a very good Sonar Technician in some interesting survival situations, my strategy is based on that grounding.

M35a2 deuce has no electronics in it whatsoever, the a3 does, so (in theory) the a2 will survive an EMP.The deuce also has a multifuel engine and will run on anything, gasoline to jet fuel. You can change the oil, filter it, and pour it into the tank. Fryer grease, whatever. It really likes ATF as it has higher BTUs.It will haul 5tons of your gear, and 6x6 will get you most anywhere. Additionally, not too expensive on gov auctions...

While relatively few people will recognize it by name, lots of unpleasant folks will see it as an asset they can use*. Said folks may decide to take such an asset from its legitimate owner, either by theft or by violence.

Personally, I prefer an inconspicuous AWD/4X4 vehicle as a BOV, trading some capability for anonymity. My Suzuki SX4, even with a minor lift kit, at most suggests enhanced off-road capability; a stock M35A2 screams off-road capability. For an EMP-resistant vehicle, I rather like a lightly-modified Suzuki Samurai from before September 1991, as these vehicles featured both distributors and carburetors, as opposed to later fuel injectors (which might include electronics that could be vulnerable to EMP).

*While the M35A2's six-speed manual transmission and lack of power steering are disadvantages for those who are unused to such features, they are advantages to those who are capable of operating a vehicle so equipped. Those who try to hijack such a vehicle may well find it less useful than they thought, simply because they can't drive the durned thing! Naturally, I trust that anyone on this forum would make sure that (s)he could operate a deuce before buying one....

American parachutists...devils in baggy pants...are less than 100 meters from my outpost line. I can't sleep at night; they pop up from nowhere and we never know when or how they will strike next. Seems like the black-hearted devils are everywhere....

*While the M35A2's six-speed manual transmission and lack of power steering are disadvantages for those who are unused to such features, they are advantages to those who are capable of operating a vehicle so equipped. Those who try to hijack such a vehicle may well find it less useful than they thought, simply because they can't drive the durned thing! Naturally, I trust that anyone on this forum would make sure that (s)he could operate a deuce before buying one....

I never drove one (the only time any of my units have ever even had any was when we did a stint in Macedonia, and they were permanently assigned for the US portion of the peacekeeping force there), but I understand the tranny on the M35A2 has a really weird pattern, too.

A old ford station wagon something without a bat-computer preferably backed up with a Bakfiet. What is a Bakfiet you ask? a massive cargo bike I have a friend with one who pulls home a weeks worth of groceries for a family of four this beast. http://cetmacargo.com/